Mandatory Halloweeen costumes at fall prep baseball game

It's not unknown for high school football programs -- and sometimes volleyball or soccer programs -- to encourage their fans to show up at the games most closely scheduled to Halloween in traditional costumes. It's a quirky prep pastime that sometimes lends an air of levity to games which can otherwise get caught up in the pressure of a late season playoff push.

Simi Valley baseball coach Matt LaBelle

But a team asking all of its players to show up in costumes? That has to be a first.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the very-Halloween themed game was the idea of longtime Simi Valley coach Matt La Belle (pictured above), who insisted that the one-time costumed event be mandatory so that all of his players would have to look and feel out of place rather than just a few performing as Teen Wolf and Spiderman amongst a group of jersey-clad teammates.

Regardless of who he shows up as, one thing is certain: Friday's game will almost surely be the only time he walks to the mound to pull a superhero, matador or possibly even Indiana Jones from a baseball game.